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Jax State Breaks Ground on New Serenity Garden in Collaboration with Community Foundation of Northeast Alabama

by Josh Underwood

Jacksonville, AL (04/14/2025) — Jacksonville State University and the Community Foundation of Northeast Alabama (CFNEA) gathered Friday morning to break ground on the new Serenity Garden-an outdoor space designed to promote rest, reflection, and renewal for students, faculty, staff, and visitors.

Located behind Mason Hall, the Serenity Garden is being developed through a collaboration between Jax State's Department of Art and Design, Counseling Services, and Capital Planning and Facilities, with generous support from CFNEA and Nature Sacred, a national network of Open Spaces Sacred Places (OSSP).

Inspired by OSSP's mission to create environments that nurture emotional and mental well-being, the JSU Serenity Garden will be a welcoming green space featuring the four core design elements central to the OSSP model: a portal, path, destination, and surround. Visitors will enter the garden through three archways (portal), follow a winding trail (path), arrive at a pergola with bench seating and a bronze sculpture (destination), and be immersed in thoughtfully landscaped surroundings (surround). The project also includes posts for hammocks and additional seating, encouraging community members to take time for rest and reconnection with nature.

"This has been a few short years in the making, and it's wonderful to be at this point where we are going to see the creation of a new and exciting open space and sacred place," said Fred Smith, Vice President of Community Partnerships at CFNEA. "There is great significance in this particular space that JSU has agreed to partner with us on. This will serve as a place where students can come, relax, recharge, and have an opportunity to just take a load off for a minute and contemplate and get ready for what lies ahead of them."

With this project, Jacksonville State becomes one of over 130 designated Open Spaces Sacred Places across the country-and one of only two colleges in Alabama to host such a site. The garden's presence will expand CFNEA's network of 20 OSSP sites in Northeast Alabama, serving nine counties and elevating the region's national presence in the movement for nature-based community healing.

The vision for the Serenity Garden was first imagined by Jax State Counseling Services in 2018, just prior to the EF-3 tornado that devastated campus. Since then, the concept evolved into a symbol of campus recovery-later gaining momentum following the COVID-19 pandemic, which underscored the need for reflective, tech-free spaces in the wake of prolonged isolation and grief.

"The vision for a space like this began in 2018 before the devastating tornado that deeply affected our campus," said Julie Nix, Coordinator of Social Work Field Education and former Counseling Services Director. "This journey has been long and, at times, uncertain. But today, we take a powerful step forward. I cannot wait to see the JSU community experience the peace, reflection, and healing that this space will provide."

Terry Casey, Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, expressed his appreciation for the collaboration's significance and for what the space will mean to Jacksonville State students for years to come. "Today, we gather to celebrate a significant milestone for Jacksonville State University," Casey said. "That would not be possible without our partnership with the Community Foundation of Northeast Alabama."

The project also benefitted from campus-wide support, including a student-led fundraising campaign spearheaded by 2024 Miss JSU Grace Ann Lundy, whose efforts raised more than $14,000, sparked mental health conversations, and helped reduce stigma.

"This is probably the first time in my career that I've seen a student as passionate and involved in a project like this," said Casey. "Without her and without her dedication to her students and to face the conversation of mental health speaks highly of her character, and we would not be able to do what we're doing without her. As the Vice President for Student Affairs, it's an honor for me to have a student be a leader in a venture such as this."

Scheduled to open before the start of the Fall 2025 semester, the garden will serve not only as a place of personal restoration but also as a venue for student-led events and mental health programming, supported by Nature Sacred's quarterly grant offerings.

"There is an old saying, 'Philanthropy is like planting a tree under whose shade you may never get to sit,'" Smith added in his closing remarks. "Eventually, we're thinking about another generation, a generation that doesn't know it exists now, but also a generation that's being prepared for by us."

To learn more about the Serenity Garden or to support the project, visit www.jsu.edu. To explore the broader OSSP initiative and its impact, visit www.cfnea.org/ossp.

Media Attachments

From Left: Fred Smith, Vice President of Community Partnerships at CFNEA; Tyler Law, Logistics & Asset Management Supervisor at Jax State; Grace Ann Lundy, Miss JSU 2024; Julie Nix, Coordinator of Social Work Field Education and former Counseling Services Director; Terry Casey, Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management

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